Here's how Apple is displaying HomePod in its retail stores [Gallery]

Sonos is now offering a truly stereo pair of Sonos One speakers for $349 to directly challenge the HomePod at the same price point.

But how does the speaker, which Apple says is more of a music device than a smart home hub, compare to the popular smart speakers?

The above being said, the HomePod is starting to seem like a niche product targeting Apple's loyal fanbase.

Also worth noting here: if you're on Android you are fat out of luck - this is an Apple speaker that implores you to go all in on Apple.

Apple's new $349 smart speaker HomePod officially hit stores today, and you're probably already aware that the initial reviews have been mixed: Generally positive on the sonic performance, generally neutral-to-positive on the industrial design, and disappointed to downright negative on Siri. The attached 21 track playlist "Welcome to the Party Mix" is hosted on Spotify which is a jab itself as Apple has chose to not yet support direct Spotify playback on HomePod that Sonos offers. There's a lot of stuff about "high-excursion woofers" and "custom seven-tweeter arrays" that we'll spare you, but the real kicker is that it's intelligent enough to adapt the sound according to where you place it in the room and what music you're playing.

The company's latest hardware product arrives for pre-order customers and in stores on Friday, a late entrant in the smart speaker market led by Amazon.com Inc's Echo devices and Google's Home gadgets. The HomePod also works only with iOS devices. Siri on HomePod focused on doing a few things well for the individual and the communal family of the house, and from my experience, it did those things well.

You'll similarly be able to balance two HomePods next to each other for a complete stereo effect but must wait for a free software update from Apple coming later in the year. Now questions abound over whether Apple can compete in a hotly contested market with a virtual assistant in Siri that doesn't work as well as Amazon's Alexa or Google Assistant.

So can Siri take on Alexa?

The HomePod is one of the priciest home speaker models out there, priced just $50 less than the Google Home Max.

Siri data is retained - to help tailor music recommendations and other actions - but only on your device, not on Apple's central servers.

The set-up process is less cumbersome than for the Echo or Google Home, which use a companion app and require some WiFi network selection. This is a nifty feature which arguably gives the device an edge over the other two speakers here.

Google Home Max launched this week. You will need an Apple device to set up a HomePod - Apple for compatible iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch models through iOS 11.2.5 that was released last month. At times, not only did HomePod respond, but so did Siri on my nearby iPhone.

Apple is notorious for keeping its source code close to its chest, but someone just leaked a heap of very sensitive code online. Apple has issued a DMCA takedown notice with GitHub seeking the removal of the leaked iOS source code process called iBoot .

The delivery crew took back the 13,500 extra eggs. but not until after the chefs had some fun taking pictures with them. Norway's Olympic team may need to read up on that after ordering 15,000 eggs when they meant to order 1,500.

In 2003, militants had carried the attack in the same area in which 12 soldiers lost their lives and seven others were injured. Guru and Bhat were hanged and buried inside New Delhi's Tihar Jail on February 9, 2013 and February 11, 1984 respectively.

Jared Leto's Joker will appear in any DCEU films, including Suicide Squad 2 , should the character make an appearance in the film. Variety reports that Joaquin Phoenix is in talks to star in The Joker origin movie that Warner Bros.is working on.

The weather service's extended forecast calls for an overcast weekend with more scattered showers likely into next week as well. This will allow for temperatures to climb well into the 30s, with a few spots near 40 across southern Vermont and New Hampshire.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The NASA spacecraft that gave us close-ups of Pluto has set a record for the farthest photos ever taken. But every once in a while, it wakes up, and it snaps a few photos which it then beams back to Earth.

However, the broader availability of Snapchat's inventory has corresponded with a reduction in the value of each ad. NBCUniversal and Snap Inc a year ago announced a joint venture to produce original scripted shows for Snapchat .

A 4-4 deadlock in the voting led to a coin flip, which resulted in Hamlin winning the right to be flag-bearer. The Sochi 2014 bronze medallist was selected following a vote by fellow members of the American team.

Published iPhone Source Code Is The 'Biggest Leak In History'
Last year, a Reddit user named Apple_Internals posted the code, but at the time, it failed to gain the same amount of attention. There are no details on how ZioShiba got the iBoot source code, but after seeing it, we're certain it's the real deal .

Ex A-League player Miller dies, aged 36
The Championship club wrote: "We are saddened to hear this evening that former #SAFC midfielder Liam Miller has passed away". A box to box midfielder, Miller will be remembered for his crisp passing and powerful shooting from distance.

Josh Pastner denies allegation of sexual assault in lawsuit
The statement goes on to highlight Bell's alleged criminal past and "long history of dishonest and antisocial behavior". He has filed a defamation suit in response to those allegations and has denied the sexual assault allegations as well.

Welcome home, Dwyane Wade
After reaching a buyout with the Chicago Bulls last offseason, Wade considered the Heat among several potential destinations. The final deal was sending Dwyane Wade back to the Miami Heat for a protected second-round pick.

Immigrant suspected in NFL player's death had been deported
Police in Whitestown, Ind. pulled over Orrego-Savala after he failed to stop at a stop sign, reports the Indianapolis Star . John Perrine said investigators believe Monroe was already dead when the trooper's vehicle hit him in the center lane.